Mental health

Looking forward to exploring the new website 🙂

Oh so WAY BETTER…I am sure this will encouarge new membership. Well done?
Na Paora

Kia ora Paora.

Congratulations Anaru and Karen, all the best for the roles you have taken on and for your co-leadership.

Congratulations Anaru raua ko Karen. Anaru I have all the confidence in you; you have the passion and drive to bring about new challenges and changes. Two persons is better than one Biculturalisim in Practice to the for front. Kia Kaha Kia Maia Kia Manawanui.

New Changes can only be good kia kaha kia maia kia manawanui

Please be upfront about reasons for increasing membership fees.
Of course it is about raising more funds!! Saying so acknowledges the intelligence of members. Saying it is not, does the opposite!

I am sure the reasons given are genuine and important, but so is transparency that any increase in fees is just that – an increase to raise funds.

I wish the board all the best. However, this does not give me confidence that members will be treatedas colleagues, as we should be.

Thanks for your comments and apologies if our blog post is misleading or unclear in any way.
Yes a fee increase will create more funds. It will create funds to cover the ever increasing cost of base line services and to assist us as an association to be able to cover our bills.
As a board we grappled for some time about whether we should increase fees or instead drastically reduce services and functionality of the association in order to continue to function. Clearly we opted for a fee increase after members had indicated that they sought a stronger and more present voice in their association not a further diminished one.
However in increasing this fee we are ever mindful of the low pay rates and financial stress within our communities, for those in paid employment as well as those who are not. We are mindful of the challenges this may bring and have some further innovative ideas (which are no way near developed or fully thought through yet to announce as this time) to mitigate against fee payment hardship and to support those of our members who would find this $1 a week increase un-affordable.
As a board we felt it important that if fees increased, to cover essential costs, that we also consider new ways of doing some things and ensured that this extra $1 did not just ‘disappear’, but could be shown to being effectively used in creating changes.
We hope our strategic plan reflects to members a new vision forward and over time we will continue to roll out announcements demonstrating more of the changes we envisage to support our membership, voice and CPD.
Apologies again if our initial blog did not put this in a way which was clear enough.
Please keep your comments coming however,; the Association is all of us, and we value feedback, engagement and participation of all members as we re-imagine our association into the next 50 years.
Nga mihi nui
Karen

My thoughts are none of the above made any sense. I work in an adolescent mental health unit starship hospital. These young people are our future kaumatua sad to say they will not reach that age as they and their whanau are struggling to live under this cruel system that diminishes our Walrua.
We are the doers the ones at the bottom of everyone’s Maunga trying to keep them on their waka.
All of yous out there who talk at these conferences you haven’t a clue what’s happening in your back yard
Our unit also provides guidance for mothers suffering with a mental illness
You all don’t know what you’d ate talking about
I work with a brilliant multidisciplinary team as culture advisor and they hold
The answers to the well-being of our
Maori people
We live it breath it walk the talk
Our young people need our help now
Help them first then we all can grow
In harmony
I acknowledge their are serious racists issues that’s why our dynamic team work within the structures set up to honour the principles of our Treaty of Waitangi
A conference like this should be set up for indigenous elders and rangatahi
Then our Pepi will not be harmed if we return to our roots

Good stuff Luis. Exciting range of actions here and it’s just so fantastic to have you coordinating our collective voice on important issues. Nga mihi, Jude Douglas.

Well done. It is the responsibility of all Social Workers to oppose the TTP. It will undermine Maori Sovereignty, New Zealand Sovereignty, the ability of one parliament to bind a future parliament i.e. parliamentary sovereignty, and basic Human Rights as set out in the NZ Bill of Rights Act and the UN Charters on Human Rights.
The agreement was negotiated in secrecy.
It gives power to Transnational Corporations to challenge anything that they see as impinging on their interests in the NZ Polity. We need to remember the Multi-lateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) that was nearly adopted internationally. The MAI was stopped when the French government withdrew from the negotiations. Many local authorities adopted positions declaring there territorial areas as being MAI free zones. We need to now create new TPP free zones in Aotearoa New Zealand. The TPP ignores both the Spirituality of the peoples of the Earth. It commodifies people and puts them under the mantle of neo-liberal economics. The people are the subjects of economics not the objects. The wairua present in Papatuanuku cannot be abused and violated.

Looking forward to as many members of your organisation as possible helping to pack Queen Street tomorrow lunchtime from 12 noon Aotea Square – to Britomart (NOT Sky City) 1pm.

For a peaceful, family-friendly march, of thousands of concerned Kiwis, which will show this John Key led National Government, (and the watching world) that we, the people, do NOT want this pro-corporate TPPA.

Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
(Who does NOT support NZ signing the TPPA).

Agree it is great that ANZASW is taking a stand on this one and that each and every social worker should take a stand against TPPA

Great that ANZASW is representing us publicly and well. Thank you!

I don’t agree with such a massive fee increase when this membership doesn’t seem to give you much as a member. The website is not user friendly and there are no opportunities that warrant the current let alone an increase. If SWRB are undertaking competency, then I can see a lot of people, who are not having their fees paid through employment asking the question what do I get for memnership? Anzasw seems to be motivated by the people who work tirelessly to advocate for social work within self directed groups/lots of unpaid work for publish. I think focus needs to be what are the true benefits are for anzasw members – extra funds for IT? Another sad reality of socially driven expectations.

Kia ora Karen and Anaru
I appreciate the decisions which have been made by the Board in consultation with members and the open, friendly and transparent way in which those decisions have been communicated. While it is a struggle for members on low salaries to pay both ANZASW and SWRB fees, the reality is that this is politicial! Sometime in the recent past Lucy made available a chart which illustrated the fees paid by other professional groups and it seemed to me that ANZASW membership fees were modest by comparison. If we want recognition of our profession and the corresponding benefits we are obliged to participate in ANZASW to raise those issues, debate them and make them known to politicians. Before this however, it is my belief that we must work at a personal level and as Association members, with and alongside whanau and community advocacy groups to raise the issues and bring about change for those most marginilised by the current and historical policies of the state.

I agree with BEW that more information about the present Board resignations is required.

If members are unhappy pls stand for the next AGM.

Thanks Neil for sharing the ‘taking a hit for calling out racism’ blog. Whilst I appreciate that you do not agree with its content, there is nothing “distorted or alleged” about my experience of being ‘taken to task’ inside that Board meeting. In the same way you remind me (above) about my obligation to the “code of ethics for the governance of the ANZASW board.” And how I expect I will be ‘taken to task’ at the coming SGM (sigh).

It might help to know that I adhere to both Maori as well as Pakeha ethical guidelines. Confidentiality is a Pakeha construct that can protect abuse as well as the abused. I will always be firstly accountable to my own people, which means, when anyone of my whanau is transgressed (including myself), I will not be silent about it.

In the same way, I will not be silent about racism and privileged positioning within NZ social work. A neon example being, that tangata whenua can be democratically voted onto the ANZASW Board by its tangata whenua membership, only to be voted off by tauiwi.

I think it is incredibly sad and the epitome of privileged positioning that the very members who continue to talk about ‘my’ having damaged their professional reputations, could be perceived as doing exactly the same to the remaining Board members; whom only three months ago they sat in unity with.

To my fellow Board members, truly honorable people and as dedicated to the Association as any have been before; who collectively have provided many years of faithful and competent service to social work and ANZASW. “Be strong enough to stand alone, be yourself enough to stand apart, but be wise enough to stand together when the time comes.”

Now I am interested in focusing on ‘infinitely’ more important issues such as the release of final CYF review report which bought tears to myself and my colleagues when we see the stealth that will result from this report to further alienate whakapapa from whanau. The termination of the ‘ti’ in tikanga!

Na Paora Moyle. See you all at the SGM.

thanks Paora for your response. See you at the SGM

Tēnā koutou katoa,
He uri ahau tēnei nō Ngāti Maniapoto, Te Whakatōhea, Ngāti Awa hoki.
As a member of ANZASW I have until now mostly observed from the sideline. Until now I have chosen to refrain from entering into this particular discussion forum, and not react or respond publically. However, I have been reminded that my silence can be seen as further supporting a mono-cultural privileged position and further marginalise tangata whenua. I would like to categorically state that I am supportive of the board’s actions and decision to respond to the confidentiality breach. Do I need to know exactly how this was addressed, no. I am also supportive of the blog posts mentioned earlier in the comments thread. Why? I have been a member of the Association for a few years now, and my position and voice has not been reflected by the board until now. Now we have someone that has the courage to ask the difficult questions and to publically challenge issues such as racism and white privilege. This in turn gives me the courage to speak publically in forums such as this.
Ngā mihi nui ki ā koe e Paora!
Nā Marlana Maru

Is it relational to completely ignore people’s emails and requests for action? Is it relational to go straight to very public attack without at least trying to have a conversation? Is it relational to accuse colleagues of not answering valid and important questions when they did in fact go to great pains to do so? And took abuse in the process.
You and I have a different understanding of what it means to be relational.

Here’s my view on this. ANZASW is supposed to be our professional body with Board members who uphold the values and practice of SW. I do not see much of this being demonstrated with the lack of transparency and accountability with regards to breaches in confidentiality of board matters, the management of this event, the loss of board members and how we are to move forward.

Social work has a value of social justice which is about challenging systems and processes not having personalized ‘bitchfests’ within our own profession. Are we not meant to be modeling respectful difference. Publically trashing our peers, in my book, does not equate with positive role modeling.

Recently I voted for a clean slate for our board to start again fresh – our credibility as a professional group is at stake here folks!!! In-fighting and publicizing it is an embarrassment. I am assuming our constitution is a process that has been agreed upon by the profession so this is what needs to be upheld or modified if it is not reflecting the values and practice that our board should be modeling.

I want to acknowledge that everyone’s view is valid – not necessarily right nor wrong but sometimes different; and the relational aspect is about coming to a place of respectful agreement regardless of ethnicity, gender, cultural, religious or other viewpoints. Bi-cultural values are embedded within SW practice – when these may not be evident there are more respectful ways of addressing this issue.

ANZASW has bigger fish to fry – what about getting politically vocal about the things that are going to impact on how we work with the people we are trying to provide a service to. Is that not the point of SW after all???